Star Wars: Andorrecently finished its twelve episode first season, which received rave reviews from fans and critics alike. Originally planned to be five seasons that spanned the half a decade of Cassian Andor’s life prior toRogue One: A Star Wars Story, Andorwas later trimmed down in pre-production to be just two seasons.
The first of those two seasons has already aired, showing Cassian’s origins on Ferrix and introducing audiences to the inner workings of the Empire. The second season recently began filming last month. Season 2 is tentatively scheduled to release in the fall of 2024, according to showrunner Tony Gilroy. The story is poised to ramp up the broader connections to a galaxy far, far away as it gets closer toRogue Oneand the originalStar Warstrilogy.
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InRogue One,the Rebellion is a fully formed organizationbased on the planet Yavin, and had two core senators (Mon Mothma and Bail Organa) openly supporting the cause. They have ships, weapons, and a structure in place to help them fight the Empire. All of this is later seen in the original trilogy, where the Rebels clearly demonstrate that they are a capable force when it comes to taking on Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, and the rest of the Imperials.
Although set only a few years prior,Andor’sRebellion is a far cry from the one seen inRogue One. In the new series, there is no organized Rebellion. Instead, there are factions of fighters that are splintered into groups, like Saw Gerrera’s team and that of Anton Kreeger. Luthen Rael, played by Stellen Skarsgaard, is attempting to form the broader network of Rebels in season one. But by the end, the biggest and most monumental development was the recruitment of Cassian Andor, especially as the Rebellion is still nowhere near as organized or official as it will become in the near future.
That near future will be shown in season two ofAndor,as will the further development of the Rebellion. They still have a long way to go before they reach the size and scale as they were in the first threeStar Warsfilms, so the path to that will surely be shown. Recently, Tony Gilroy confirmed as much, saying thatAndorseason two will feature the size and scale of theRebellion that fans and audiences have become accustomed toover the years.
Interestingly enough, the timing and subject matter ofAndorappears to be on a collision course withStar Wars Rebels, the animated series from creator Dave Filoni. In that show, Mon Mothma made some appearances,including an episode where she publicly declaredher support for the Rebellion and her disdain for Emperor Palpatine. InAndor,Mothma and her true political beliefs are still hidden. That shift is expected to occur as the war between the Rebels and the Empire heats up and comes to the forefront more. It’s also possible that that development with Mon Mothma is not depicted on screen, but is instead an event that has already happened when season two begins. Season two takes place one year after the first season, and there are expected to be some changes in the overall storyline as it’s picked up.
What’s also in store for season two is the introduction of an instantly classicStar Warsdroid, K2-SO. K2 was played by Alan Tudyk inRogue One,and was Cassian’s trusted and beloved sidekick who died alongside him on Scarif. InAndor,Cassian has another droid, a family droid that belonged to his parents, B2-EMO. B2’s fate is unknown,but what is certain is that K2 will be coming into the mix. Cassian and K2’s first meeting was shown in a comic book afterRogue One’srelease, but it’s certain to be shown again in season two of the Netflix show. Alan Tudyk was originally announced to return for the first season, but the creative overhaul that saw Tony Gilroy return to the mix meant that this was saved for the second outing.
Beyond that,Gilroy has also confined a few more detailsabout season two. One of these is that the final scene ofAndorwill lead right into Cassian’s first scene inRogue One, where he visits a Rebel spy on the Rings of Kafrene. More broadly, the second season will take place over the course of four years, with each arc (three episodes in length) making up one year. This is essentially the same structure as the first season, and one that a few animated shows set in a galaxy far, far away have also had. This allowed the first season to have distinct, unique stories that were fully fleshed out and not rushed, but also didn’t take up too much time. The three episode arc proved to be a perfect structure for the stories being told, particularly with the Aldahni and Narkina 5 prison plot lines.
IfAndorseason two receives the same acclaim as the first, then it is sure to be beloved. The first season earned a great 96% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 85% audience score. It might not have the cameos or surprises as otherStar Warsprojects,but the prestigious writing and excellent storytellingmakesAndorthe latest compelling story for the franchise.
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